The leader of Ealing's Labour group has shrugged off defection by two former party members to the Conservatives, saying the Tories are "hallucinating" over the issue.

The leader of Ealing's Labour group has shrugged off defection by two former party members to the Conservatives, saying the Tories are "hallucinating" over the issue.

Julian Bell said he was not worried after Southall Conservatives announced on Tuesday that former Labour members Kuldeep Singh Grewal and Gurdev Singh Brar have changed sides.

Mr Bell scoffed at suggestions that the defection represented a significant change in local politics.

He said "Frankly, the Conservatives are hallucinating. These were two insignificant players in Southall Labour politics."

Mr Bell said Mr Grewal stood as an independent in last year's by-elections and thus automatically forfeited his party membership.

"Mr Grewal was chairman of Labour's Local Government Committee in the 80s but he has not been actively involved in the Labour party in the 90s. He's hardly some kind of Labour heavyweight.

"Mr Brar has not been active in the Labour party for some years. He's a nobody and we don't know where he is."

Councillor Manjit Singh, chairman of Ealing Southall Conservatives, welcomed both men to the party.

He said: "The tide is turning in Southall and we see more and more people ditching the Labour Party and joining the Conservatives. Asians believe in owning your own property, family values and charity work and for us the Conservatives are our natural home."

Mr Grewal said: "I am very much disappointed with the Labour party at the national and the local level.

"Many members have lost confidence in the Norwood Green Labour Party, and this is why I and five members of my family left the Labour party to join the Conservatives. I joined the Conservative Party so that we can get a new councillor for Norwood Green and a new MP for Ealing Southall who will work for local people."

Mr Brar said he was impressed by the Conservative administration in Ealing as within two years there had been cleaner streets and less fly-tip-ping and graffiti, without the high council tax increases felt under Labour.

Last year Gurcharan Singh, councillor for Lady Margaret Ward in Southall, also defected from Labour to the Conservatives.